Good parenting produces better well-grounded citizens Let me be the first to openly concede that my discussion of this topic consists of fundamental reasoning on a communal issue that is very complex, technical and somewhat profound.  As a retired school teacher, registered nurse and a parent nothing in my  education affords me a monopoly on this matter. However, instinctively here is my diagnosis. Parents are in serious need of help, as they are certainly not getting it from the myriads of parenting advisors writing today, or from any other known, recognized or trusted source . Furthermore, in the Black community …

While we are away at the circus, decisions are being made that affect our lives and that of our children and grandchildren. With everything going on in the world today, we tend to fall for distractions that are taking our eyes off the real issues of the day. Some of us are addicted to gossip, soap operas and other forms of entertainment in a manner that is detrimental to personal and collective progress and upward mobility. Now that the U.S. presidential election campaign has morphed into a big circus, we have failed to look beyond the two performers and see …

An individualistic way of thinking that plays us against each other and destroys us I felt it expedient to add my penny to the recent article (Community Contact, September 15, 2016) by Rasta Keith, titled: “The Black Psyche – A Hindrance to Collective Economic Prosperity. Granted, some of the facts outlined therein were on target, nevertheless I feel that some major hindrances were overlooked, and should be addressed. Yes, by now we all know that the most dangerous enemy that we face is neither the Caucasian man nor the police. Instead, it is the slave mindset that promotes self rather …

You were made in God’s image so it’s time you wake up and act like you know Yes guys, you can now put my name  to your  list of women who keep their promises. In the last edition of the Community Contact, I wrote about The Blame Games Women Play, wherein I pinpointed the reasons underlying female woes, and endeavoured to correct the belief  that what was wrong with the Black woman is the Black man. Sorry to disappoint, but the conclusion did not let you off the hook, but instead warrants a good hard and entirely different approach. Guys …

Ladies, a great many of you need to breathe, not just exhale. During a recent community gathering, I inadvertently found myself trapped between a group, or, would that better put be, a “pack” of females, all of whom during continued parlance undeniably sealed the confirmation that a serious problem exists with our females. And I am not referring to the young females (a different basket of herrings), because they fall into a generation uniquely on the wrong track, with an entirely different set of factors, issues and influences. Now I know, based on what I’m going to say, I will …

For decades, Black activists have organized in response to police brutality, but part of the underlying reason for the visibility and nomenclature of the current Black Lives Matter movement is the fact that such problems have persisted, and even seem to escalate. The birth of the movement as a hashtag was somewhat precipitous, and to this day still remains somewhat of an enigma. Confusion swirls around what BLM really is, mainly because of its dual existence, both as a discrete national network of activists and at the same time as a much more amorphous movement focusing largely on police brutality. …

As violence begets violence, what kind of notes are they taking… America has always been regarded as the world’s television. No matter what time you tune in, or on what channel, she always has something going on that will seize your attention and unravel your moral fiber and cause you to question your very being. Be it lynching, hangings, segregation, water-hosing, police attack dogs, marches, protests, bombings, sit-ins, walk-outs, space try-outs, debates, updates, marching bands or angry Klans, lootings or shootings in churches, cinemas or schools…there’s never a shortage of activity on the screen. Now that there is some semblance …

Firstly permit me to offer my condolences to the family and loved ones of the two recently slain Black individuals Philando Castile and Alton Sterling, the slain Dallas policemen, and all the other victims of police brutality in the U.S. The data is unequivocal, whether we like it or not, police killings is a race problem. African- Americans as compared to other races are being killed disproportionately, and by an extremely wide margin. What is underlying these killings? I am not about to proffer any response for I am no psychology major possessing any special insight into the psychology of …

When last have you heard of someone in our community building wealth, real wealth, from winning the lottery? Almost every week I question the mentality of my people who somehow or the other do not know where it’s all at. I’m referring of course to habitual loto players, gamblers… My frustration level rises every time I happen to be behind one of my people and see them carelessly purchase at least $40 worth of lottery tickets. Say what! Lotto Quebec certainly has us convinced that it may be the avenue out of our existing financial morass. I oftentimes wonder yes, …

Reactions different in Cincinnati and Orlando incidents Once again the world was thrown into a mental tailspin via the media. At the head of it all were toddlers, yes, toddlers at the age where they are still trying to figure out who and what is all around them. A tragic incident recently unfolded at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa. A 2-years-old was reportedly at the edge of a lagoon when he was snatched and dragged into the water by an alligator. Let me just hold it there for a moment. Roll backwards to last month when a young boy …